August 2014 Book Reviews

The 6 New Books That Will Make You Look Smart And With It This Month

According to T.S. Eliot, April is the cruelest month. But I think there’s a definite argument to be made for giving August that superlative. At some point, you’re probably going to find yourself needing an escape from the sweltering, never-ending heat. So as it gets hotter, muggier, and all your friends start to go on vacation, walk (because it’ll probably hurt to run) to your local bookstore to pick up a few of these titles and find a place with central air conditioning to hide away.

Flings by Justin Taylor (August 19th) Justin Taylor is one of the best short story writers out there today, and this collection only further cements that. The characters that populate Flings are all trapped in the confines of their own lives. Their attempts to escape, whether it’s by leaving their long-time girlfriend without warning, sleeping with a married man they just met, or moving across the country a couple times, are explored and illuminated. From Hong Kong to a Phish concert, lives are laid out in prose both deeply compassionate and unflinchingly honest. $17.99 at Amazon.com

The Organized Mind by Daniel Levitin (August 19th)After tackling the mystery of music and the human brain in This Is Your Brain on Music, pop psychologist/neurologist Daniel Levitin has now turned to an even more monumental task: how to organize your mind in a world where you’re constantly inundated with information. Instead of taking a judgemental or contrarian stance against a world of smartphones and Twitter, Levitin is sympathetic, recognizing that we’re all expected to consume as much information as quickly as possible and react as quickly as possible. He breaks down different sectors of life — home, time, business, even what to teach your children — and discusses the best ways to make everything fit together in such a brave new world. $20.48 at Amazon.com

Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay (August 5th)Following just a few months after the release of her debut novel, An Untamed State, this collection of essays is a crash course on what’s made Roxane Gay such an internet darling. In each easily digestible essay, Roxane Gay showcases her ability navigate complex issues and make discussions surrounding gender, race, and privilege accessible with her wit and candor. Whether you’re well-versed in these issues or a total newcomer, there’s something new and engaging for everyone in this collection. As a man, consider Bad Feminist the most enjoyable bit of extracurricular summer reading you’ve ever been assigned. $12.96 at Amazon.com

Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage by Haruki Murakami (August 12th)The opening sentence of this newest edition to the oeuvre of one of Japan’s most modern novelists is pure Murakami: “From July of his sophomore year in college until the following January, all Tsukuru Tazaki could think about was dying.” The novel proceeds from there, following the gloomy Tazaki throughout his life, from his high school days as the odd one out in a group where he was only one without a color in his last name to his life as a designer of railroad stations. The novel harkens back to the author’s earlier work like Kafka on the Shore, and it’s a great read for a rainy day. Colorless is Murakami doing what he does best — examining the complex interior sadness of his characters while remaining perfectly outside of it.$15.57 at Amazon.com